Craft Everything: Baldie's goes gourmet with new dine-in restaurant

Tuesday

Oct 18, 2016 at 9:16 PMOct 18, 2016 at 9:32 PM

Matthew Ferreira Staff writer @GAZMattFerreira

LAKEVILLE — When it comes to the pizza business in the local area, the Mastrangelo family has made quite the name for itself. From humble beginnings running a takeout service out the back of a Lakeville convenience store, the opening of a Middleboro restaurant, and now the new Baldie’s Craft Pizzeria in Lakeville, the Mastrangelos keep taking things to the next level.

“The name ‘Baldie’s’ has been around since 1998. We started in Starr’s Country Market right down the street and ran a successful takeout service there for years. It wasn’t much but it let us get our name out there and we made a reputation for having quality food,” said part-owner Bud “Buddy” Mastrangelo, who runs the family’s two pizza businesses with his parents, Mike and Diane Mastrangelo. “Then five years ago, we wanted to get into the dine-in end of things, having a bar, waiters and things like that so we opened Buddy’s Pizza Pub in Middleboro, and now we’ve moved Baldie’s here.”

Mastrangelo, who, along with his siblings, is a Lakeville native, said the new Baldie’s location has been in “soft opening” mode for about a month and a half now, and explained how the new set-up works.

“Some people have been getting confused since we started here, but just to explain, it’s like this: here in this building, we have the takeout side, which is Baldie’s Pizza, and then we have the dine-in/bar side which is Baldie’s Craft Pizzeria, and each has its own website (see below) and its own menu,” he said. “So people can still come to the takeout side and pick up a pizza, steak and cheese sub, buffalo tenders and things like that, but then if they’re looking for more upscale dining, a place for date night, to celebrate grandma’s birthday, or a place with a nice atmosphere to sit at the bar and enjoy some craft beer, there’s Baldie’s Craft Pizzeria.”

While Baldie’s Pizza is the same takeout service that many locals already know and love, Mastrangelo says the new craft pizzeria side — emphasis on “craft” — is serving up something the area hasn’t seen before.

“Here on the craft pizzeria side, it’s craft everything — craft pizzas and entrées, craft beers, craft cocktails. Our gourmet pizzas, which are only available on this side, have been popular. We make a Neapolitan pizza, ‘The Mastrangelo’, Bacon and Brie, and Prosciutto and Pear to give you a few,” Mastrangelo said. “Our brick oven is a dome oven imported from Italy which is visible from the seating area and adds a nice aesthetic to the place. With a brick oven, you get a crispier crust and cooks at a higher temperature. It gives the pizza a nice flavor to it.”

Other items at the craft pizzeria include the “Juicy Lucy” stuffed cheeseburger, Concord grape panna cotta, and unique takes on standards like sesame chicken and sirloin.

“We do have a smaller menu here — most of our competitors have huge menus with 70-something items. Here, we wanted to keep the menu smaller — 20 items,” he said. “That way, when you come in and get that salmon, you know Mike just cut that salmon up the same morning. No matter what you get, you know it’s going to be as fresh as possible.”

Mastrangelo says the new adventurous menu at the craft pizzeria is much to the credit of Baldie’s new head chef, Mike Wisdom.

“This is the first time we’ve brought in an executive chef who really prides himself on that title of ‘chef.’ Mike Wisdom is a renowned chef who came to us from a diamond-rated restaurant. He’s a younger guy, 28-years-old, and he has so much passion and creativity — a real fire inside of him for this work. The things he comes up with are just amazing,” Mastrangelo said. “People can expect some exciting new stuff coming to our menu over the next year. You won’t be disappointed.”

But the food is only one part of Baldie’s fresh new take on upscale service. There’s also the bar, where variety is the name of the game.

“For our beer cooler, we really focus on craft beer, and we offer as many locally brewed craft beers as possible. You can find all the local surrounding breweries here, like Berkley Beer Co., Mayflower Brewing in Plymouth, Black Hat Brew Works in Bridgewater to name a few. All in all we have 40 brews on draft,” he said. “We also keep root beer on draft too. Shipyard makes a great one called Captain Eli’s. A lot kids like to get that one because they get to have it straight from the draft line, and for adults we do a delicious cocktail with vanilla and whipped cream vodka.”

“The bar itself is a 33-seat copper bar that was done locally by Cape Cod Copper here in Lakeville,” he continued. “And the tap is going to be in constant rotation, so there will always be new brews to try.”

When it came to the pizzeria’s high-end yet comfortable look, design was a family affair, Mastrangelo said.

“I actually designed the beer tap myself, and my sister Christina (Mastrangelo) who owns Dolce Beauty Salon in Middleboro is a hairdresser by trade, but she’s also good at design, so she planned out all the interior design in this place — the table tops, the floors, walls, the photos you see hanging up, etc.,” he said. “And actually, when I leave here I’m headed to go finish up our ‘Baldie’s’ sign and hopefully that’ll be up soon. It was designed by myself and my friend Jeffrey did all the welding.”

Mastrangelo said that his other sister, Melissa Mastrangelo, is a pizza cook for the restaurant.

While the business is now settling into its new arrangement, Mastrangelo says this is far from the end of the road with regards to the evolution of Baldie’s.

“This is a very exciting time for us. We’re giving the area something they haven’t had here before. In our Facebook reviews, I’ve seen people say stuff like Baldie’s is bringing Boston dining here to Lakeville,” he said.

“In this business, if you think you’ve come to a point where everything is all set, you’re doing something wrong, because every day there are always things that can be improved, new things to try, and for that reason we’re never going to consider ourselves finished.”

For some Halloween fun, be sure to stop by Baldie’s at 40 Main St. in Lakeville for the Baldie’s Halloween Bash on Friday, Oct. 28, featuring a cash prize costume contest, and a selection of Halloween food specials by Chef Mike Wisdom.